A fish with curving vampire fangs, a gecko that looks as if it is wearing lipstick and a carnivorous plant more than seven metres high may sound like creatures from a nightmare, but they are real.

They are just three of 145 new species found in the area surrounding the Mekong River in South-East Asia in 2009.

The species have been highlighted in a WWF International report issued ahead of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity in Nagoya, Japan this month.

The environment organisation says the diversity of the region - so rich that an average of three new species were discovered each week last year - highlights the need for action to ensure these new finds survive.

Among the animals highlighted in the report New Blood: Greater Mekong New Species Discoveries 2009 is the dracula minnow, with bulging eyes and two sharp fangs curving from its low-slung jaw.

Luckily, the fish only grows to a maximum of 16.7 millimetres.

Cuter by far is the lipstick gecko, barely big enough to perch on a finger with a dark barred pattern across its lips suggestive of cosmetics.

Other featured creatures include a fangless snake, a frog that chirps like a cricket and a pitcher plant that traps insects and grows to a height of over seven metres.

The report says the discoveries highlight the Greater Mekong's immense biodiversity but they also pinpoint the fragility of the region's diverse habitats and species.

The WWF report cited the likely local extinction of the javan rhino in Vietnam as one tragic indicator of the decline of biodiversity in recent times.